In many environments, it is desirable to prevent persons from viewing the inside of a room through the space between the hinged end of a door and the doorjamb. Occasionally, door hinges are designed such that there is a small crack, or space, between the hinged end of the door and the doorjamb even when the door is in a closed position. However, it is more often the case that the space between the hinged end of the door and the doorjamb is created as the door is moved to an open position.
An environment where privacy is of critical concern is that of the hospital or doctor's office setting. To this effect, many examination rooms are built with privacy doors. These are doors that are located near one of the extreme ends of the examination room, and have hinges mounted on the side of the door nearest the middle of the room. With this arrangement, the door opens to a view of the side wall of the examination room. Thus, as the door is opened to allow the doctor, nurse, or attendant to enter or leave, the patient and examination table are located behind the door. This door design also allows the door to be left slightly open, allowing those passing in the corridors only a partial view of the examination room side wall.
Nonetheless, even with a privacy door design, a visual line of sight into the examining room through the gap between the hinged end of the door and the doorjamb is provided whenever the door is in an open position. This exposure to passersby can cause the patient to feel discomfort, which often prevents the patient from relaxing and cooperating fully during examination and treatment. Consequently, the need for providing privacy at the junction of the hinged end of a door and a doorjamb is substantial.
Previous screening devices aimed at fulfilling this need have been complicated, expensive, or both. Among devices that are applied to existing door systems, many involve significant alternations to, or complete replacement of, the door and doorjamb. As a result, there has been a long-felt need for a simple, inexpensive door privacy screen that can easily be applied to existing door systems. This invention is directed to satisfying this need.